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                                      Easter Lovat  cont.

"We've no need for an army of cats; they're for keeping the mice and rats down not for pets," Duncan would explain for the umpteenth time, 'This is a farm for God's sake, not an animal sanctuary."
    So the kittens would be summarily drowned, that is, if they were found. Jimmy had, sometimes, managed to rescue a few by hiding half a litter in some comer of the bam out of sight. His favourite cat was Tartan, a female, silver tabby who was definitely queen of the bam. All the other cats deferred to her, even the tomcats.
    When Robbie, finally, found his brother in their hideout at the far comer of hayloft, he was crying softly and cradling a small mangled ball of fluff. "I hate them rats, do ya hear me Robbie. I hate 'em. Look what they've done to this poor wee kitten. Bitten and torn all over."
    "Come away Jimmy, let's bury the wee thing before Tartan sees it. She'll start howling like when Pa takes her babies away."
    Jimmy tucked the tiny corpse down his jumper and followed Robbie down the loft ladder out of the bam and across the farmyard. As they passed the tool shed Robbie waved his brother on, "I'll meet you there Jimmy."
    Both boys knew where they meant. The 'burial ground' in their mother's garden. "Just need to get the spade." His eyes took a few seconds to adjust to the dim light, just long enough to register a figure standing in the gloom at the far end of the store. Robbie gasped and the figure turned and looked at him.
    Antonio saw the child standing in the doorway and thought that above all he must speak, and quickly, before the boy took flight like some startled rabbit. Buongiorno escaped from his lips. The boy's sharp intake of breath alarmed Antonio. He tried to repair the situation.
    "Sorry, my name is Antonio. And you? What is your name?" Antonio waited, perfectly still, hoping that the boy could see his wide smile, which was beginning to make his face ache.
    Robbie could hear his heart pounding in his ears. What to do? He just wanted the spade. A horse neighing in the yard broke the spell. Robbie spluttered,
    " I'm Robbie. I need a spade... that one in the comer."
Robbie pointed and then began to edge along the workbench towards the pile of tools. Antonio moved to help and Robbie froze. Antonio took a few quiet steps forward and spoke again. "I get it for you, si?"
    He chose a small spade which he held up and asked, "This one, si?" Robbie decided it would have to do and hastily grabbed the tool and fled from the shed. He ran clutching his spade, all the way to the comer of his mother's garden where he and Jimmy buried their dead. Robbie found his brother sat on the flat stone under the Rowan tree, cradling his dead kitten.
    "Where've you been? You were gone for ages."
   "I met this man, he's new here. Let's get this wee kitty buried. I'll start digging a hole.
    Where do you want it? Just here, next to Ma's lavender bush?"
    "Aye, that'll do."
    "He's a prisoner Jimmy. He's got this uniform with a big white circle on the back. Soldiers brought him just now and they had guns, rifles... he's a foreigner. Italian I think. Must be the one Pa told us about, you know... who's going to live here and work on the farm."

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